we got a whole lot of resumes after kelly's article.resumes still work in some fields, i suppose...but in creative fields, better to make yourself stand out from the crowd. we have recently hired some seriously talented people we are PSYCHED about.you already know kelly's story, here's how everyone else got the job...

shelley:

tim and i met shelley at a party at my sister's house. she told great stories and made us laugh. her love for life and enthusiasm about all things totally won us over.she is so much fun! shelley emailed after she found and read our blog and said she loved what we do.she is super successful in her nursing career and has some flexibility in her schedule.shelley loves design, so offered to work for us for free to learn the business. we did not let her work for free, but we were so impressed with the offer, we hired her.

maria:

kelly was shopping for bedding for a master bedroom. well-meaning sales people often make suggestions when we are shopping. for a designer, shopping is like doing a puzzle. it requires focus and concentration.we have all of these pieces we need to put together to make a beautiful finished room.sometimes we think we are just about done with our puzzle...only to find we are missing a piece or a pillow sham. same thing. suggestions are often distracting until maria came along. she quickly put together a complete "plan b" bedding puzzle that impressed the heck out of kelly.maria got the job before she even knew there was one.

kacie:

she read kelly's article and filled out our redesign your career contact form.kacie wrote about her passion for the non-profit she works for and her life-long love of design.she said, "you might not know it yet, but you're my kind of people...i read pages and pages of your blog and felt like i knew you all...like we were long-time friends (well, minus the part about the patriots...i'm a steelers fan!)"she was wrong. i knew it already. i knew it when she answered "what stops you from starting?" with.."the only thing that stops me is myself."people who get that we are our own problem and we are our own solution are our kind of people.she sent a link to her brilliantly named blog, changingchaney.com and we were hooked.​we are not the only smitten ones, today was kacie's first installation day...and it also happens to be the day apartment therapy featured her own kitchen redesign!!

invite people over.connect with people. in real life. beyond social media. ask questions. be curious. kitchen table conversations change the world. we hired kelly, shelley, and wound up on tv all because of kitchen table conversations.

find the beauty in what you do.be successful at what you are already doing. maria wowed kelly by excelling at the work she was already doing.no job is fun all of the time. doing what you love is the hardest work you will ever do. being a person who finds the beauty in everything makes you irresistible.

flattery gets you everywhere.express sincere gratitude for the work of the company you hope to work for.send an email and give specific examples.repost something and tag the company. it will be noticed.

send cupcakes.

write a compelling story.people fall a little bit in love with anybody who moves their soul with a good story.send the email you keep thinking about. tell your story. but remember that brevity is the soul of wit.

don't ask for anything right away."just want you to know i think you're awesome."will get you a whole lot farther than,"just want to meet you for coffee to pick your brain."if you succeed at building a relationship, you will never even need to ask "are you hiring?"

send a thank you note.or, you know, cupcakes.

have fun!fun people want to work with fun people. don't take everything so seriously. in a creative field, don't worry about your qualifications.we were not hiring, but then, the right people came along. fun people.just be you.

and so you know... i am not going anywhere. tim and i did not decide to start all over again. again. and move to saba. yet...but kelly and i ARE going to san francisco to redesign a home next month.we are redesigning all over the country these days and just had to turn down a project in china!so we found super talented help on the home front to keep the wait in charlotte to a minimum...and so the next time china calls, we can go!kelly will still run things 'round here and i will still lead the design on every project. you will meet with me because i love you guys and meeting you and getting to know you is everything.

your happiness will always be the most important thing to us. and we know that these fresh eyes and fun people will make happy homes happen more than before. just you wait. (but for a shorter time now ;-)